About Chris Powell, The Event Expert
Chris Powell, founder of The Event Expert, has been designing, planning and delivering events for the past 24 years. I am a specialist event management trainer and consultant. I have been a local authority event manager and event director of a range of events including Exhibitions, Superhero Tri, Food and Beer festivals, Press Launches, major festivals and conferences as well as helping a variety of organisations to deliver their events – as a freelance events manager and coach.
For the past 19 years I have also been delivering In-house, bespoke event management courses and coaching programmes covering all types of public and business events. My clients are first time event planners right through experienced event professionals. I also deliver event subject specific courses, presentations and 2 to 5 day master classes.
The aim of all my event management courses and coaching programmes is to give my clients the confidence and skills to design, plan and deliver their own outstanding and rewarding events. My aim is to inspire all ‘accidental, occasional and professional event planners’ I work with to believe in themselves: to learn to be a great event planner.
I am also author of three event management books on Corporate and public events and a regular speaker on all things events. In short, I know events. I am an events groupie and love all things events!
With some 500 events successfully completed and over 3500 event managers trained, I know a thing or three about the ‘how to’ of successful events. My event management experience covers arts and cultural events, music events, community and major festivals, sports events and business events.
Personal Statement & Career Summary
Personal statement:
My aim is to help organisations, businesses and individuals design, plan and deliver their own outstanding events. I enjoy helping those involved in organising events to become capable and confident event managers, who feel able to deliver high quality and memorable events. I love a good event and I also have a lot of time for those wonderful people who are willing to say yes – I will organise the event. After all, those in the know will appreciate how hard it is to plan and deliver an event.
My company The Event Expert offers the following event management services:
- Event Consultancy: We’ll coach you to run your own events or provide specific help.
- Event Management Courses We’ll create bespoke courses and train you to run your own events.
- Events Speaker: We’ll write and deliver talks on the ‘how to’ of planning successful events.
Events career summary:
- Director, The Event Experts 2009 to date
- Director, Chris Powell Event Management, Training and Coaching 2003-2009
- Events Manager, Arts and Heritage, Basingstoke and Deane – 1993 to 2003
- Events management trainer, coach and associate events lecturer at University of Winchester and various event training organisations – 1999 to date
Skills & Experience
Professional qualifications:
2011 – Event Safety Management Diploma, University of Derby
2007 – The Training Foundation, Trainer Delivery Skills Certificate
1994 – BTEC Certificate in Management Studies
1994 – Institute of Sport, Parks and Leisure, Certificate in Leisure Management
1985 – BA Recreation and Leisure Management, Manchester University
Management skills and experience:
- Team leadership: leading, developing and motivating teams
- Design, creation, marketing, communications, delivery, idea evaluation
- Financial management: budgetary control, costing and procurement
- Strategy design, development and delivery
- Ability and experience of working at board through to operational level
- Have a large network of event partners and service providers
Events management experience:
- Major public, sports, arts and music festivals
- Corporate events such as conferences, seminars, exhibitions, dinners
- Voluntary, charitable, civic and community events
- International and regional events
Examples of organisations worked for:
Dior, Casio, Sue Ryder Care, PepsiCo, Teenage Cancer Trust, IFE / Abilways (Brussels), Council of Europe Strasbourg, NATO, Heineken, IGS Paris, Hemsley Fraser, GBC Learning and Development, Greenwell Conference Centre (Austria), MTV, Visit Essex, The Centre, Rugby Football Union, Enterprise M3, Skanska, Sharjah Tourism & Development Authority, The Business Show, public sector organisations (parish and town councils) and training companies delivering open programmes. Check out my current client list
Who do I help?
Over the past 17 years I have helped clients from the world of business, education, sport, the public and charity sector, training, tourism, creative agencies and festivals
Areas of event experience:
Using my own The Event Expert Event Planning System my courses cover:
- Purpose – pre-event research, setting an event purpose, audience profile
- Presentation – event design and creation, themes, date setting, idea evaluation, date setting, event naming, event briefs
- Planning – project plans, project teams, budgeting, contractors, infrastructure, planning for safety, insurance, contracts
- Places – venue criteria, venue evaluation, venue contracts, site planning
- Programme – designing and delivering engaging change inducing programmes
- Promotion – event promotional plans, pricing your event, ticketing: on and off-line promotions, event copy writing, event web sites, event public relations
- Production – event operational plans, risk assessments, audience management, event management plans, event day staff management and briefing, front-of-house operations
- People – running an event, leading your event team, return on event evaluation
©The Event Expert 2010
Memorable Achievements & Organisations
Memorable achievements:
- Events Director of the Hampshire’s Octoberfest, Andover, North Hampshire and South Wilts Business Expo events, Enterprise M3 Conference
- Events Director: Skillfest 07: Business and educational event
- Project Manager,15 mile Basingstoke leg of Le Tour de France 1994
- Event industry speaker: The Event Show, The Business Show, CONFEX, RSVP, Office and PA Show
- Trainer / mentor to 30 organisations running Diamond Jubilee and London 2012 events
- Event Director: Basingstoke’s Stage 2000, Millennium events programme, Skillfest 07, Basingstoke Festival (2002/3) delivered 30 events in 17 days
- Have written and delivered a number of event management courses to well-known client across the UK and more recently Europe and the Middle East and where the delegates have some form all over the world.
- Recent projects: Food and Beer festivals, Business Exhibitions, Celebration Party, Press launch, Business Conference, event toolkit for a County Councils and event web content for the Rugby Football Union
- Associate Event Lecturer on the Event Management Degree course at the University of Winchester and Event Management Diplomas with Event Management Training Limited.
- Creator and deliverer of a range of bespoke public event training courses via associations with a range of event training providers.
- Author of ‘How to organise outstanding corporate events’ Published in July 2013
- 22 years’ practical events experience, over 500 events successfully delivered and 3500 Event Managers trained
Membership of professional organisations:
- National Outdoor Events Association:
- Fellow of the Institute of Sport and Physical Activity:
- Hampshire Chamber of Commerce and Industry:
I carry full Public, Employers and Professional liability Insurance.
It’s true everyone of us could be an event manager at some time in our lives.
However, like many things in life, the ability to deliver outstanding events has to be learned. So, if you really want to put on a great event, you’ll need, on your team – experience, creativity, technical knowledge, vision, contacts and, above all event planning expertise.
Your options: hire an event management company and ask them to do it all (can be expensive) or find someone with experience to help do it yourself! (Could be very economical)
Want an experienced event planner to help you? Well…
Chris Powell, Director of The Event Expert, has been helping (accidental, occasional and professional event planners) individuals, businesses and public-sector officers design and deliver all kinds of public and corporate events. Events that inspire, engage and importantly, deliver results.
Events are indeed the ultimate live marketing experience so you need to take care over the design and delivery of them. However with the right kind of help (someone who has been there many times before) you can indeed be a great event planner and could be saying “I organised that event….with a little help from The Event Expert”
Want a FREE report – my 7 Steps to the Perfect Event Report… and learn the ‘how to’ skills of designing, planning and delivering successful events and get a whole lot more advice, tips and blogs…then pop your name in the box on the right!